Historically, agricultural harvesters have typically included or had associated therewith a crop residue spreader for disposing onto the field from which the crop was harvested the straw and other residue separated from the harvested crop. In addition, some agricultural harvesters have employed a chaff spreader for spreading chaff residue separated from the grain by the cleaning apparatus or system onto the crop field. It is desirable to provide an even distribution of crop residue across the entire cut-width of the agricultural harvester.
Alternately, it may be desirable to bale the residue discharged from the agricultural harvester. Although it has been attempted to tow the baling implement directly behind the agricultural harvester as disclosed in U.S. Publication No. 2004/261,389, formidable challenges exist. Notably, the residue is entrained in a large volume of high velocity air flowing from the discharge opening of the agricultural harvester which is directed onto the conveyor of the baling implement. Consequently, a significant amount of the residue entrained in the high velocity air that is “blasted” onto the baling conveyer ricochets off the conveyor and is distributed onto the field, which is highly undesirable.
Thus, what has been sought is a residue guide apparatus operably connected to the agricultural harvester that reduces the velocity of discharge flow of crop residue to permit efficient distribution of crop residue onto a processing implement towed behind the agricultural harvester, or alternatively resulting in a more compact windrow of crop residue that is deposited onto the field.